Indiana GOP Sen. Mike Braun attempted to walk back his comments Tuesday that the legalization of interracial marriage should have been left up to the states.
Braun attempted to clarify his remarks made on a conference call with reporters earlier in the day, during which he said he considers Roe v. Wade judicial activism and that the abortion question should be left to the states. He then said, in response to a question, that he viewed the Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia, which legalized interracial marriage nationally, in the same light.
Later in the day, though, Braun backpedaled, asserting he does not support any form of racial discrimination and insisting he “misunderstood” the questions.
“I misunderstood a line of questioning that ended up being about interracial marriage,” Braun said in a statement. “There is no question the Constitution prohibits discrimination of any kind based on race. That is not something that is even up for debate, and I condemn racism in any form at all levels and by any states, entities, or individuals.”
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Initially, when asked if he would support allowing states to ban interracial marriage, he said, “When it comes to issues, you can’t have it both ways. When you want that diversity to shine within our federal system, there are going to be rules and proceedings. They’re going to be out of sync with maybe what other states would do. It’s a beauty of the system. And that’s where the differences among points of view in our 50 states ought to express themselves,” he said.
“And I’m not saying that rule would apply in general, depending on the topic, but it should mostly be in general, because it’s hard to have it on issues that you just are interested in when you deny it for others with a different point of view,” he added.
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Braun stood firm on the position that it should have been left to the states shortly after, telling reporters, “Yes, I think that that’s something that if you’re not wanting the Supreme Court to weigh in on issues like that, you’re not going to be able to have your cake and eat it too. I think that’s hypocritical.”
